WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., Friday, October 26, 2012

Full text remarks:

Thank you, Klaus. The weather aside, this is truly an exciting day for all of us. It is really a continuing testament to the strong partnership that exists between Airbus, JAEC, MTU, UTAS, and all of our valued design partners. We've enjoyed our 40-year long history of partnership and collaboration with Airbus. We find that you're a demanding customer, but yet, a sophisticated customer with a strong flair for technology - and great technology at that. As such, we are really honored that you have decided to select us as the launch engine, the PW1100G-JM engine, for your A320neo aircraft.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate the many members of the combined development team who have all worked together to achieve this moment. We really have the best design team working together to develop the best engine for the best aircraft. After working for over 20 years to develop and mature the revolutionary gear turbofan architecture, we are all now able to provide game changing benefits to airline customers in terms of reduced fuel burn, emissions, noise and operating cost. The technology readiness execution for this Geared Turbofan™ engine family has been thorough and robust. We've proven the benefits to ourselves and to Airbus through extensive rig, ground and flight testing of the technology and of the engine architecture. The engine that's next to us, that I stand with pride, is the culmination of the significant efforts of many individuals who have all strived for excellence in their respective areas in order to create this groundbreaking product.

So, what's inside?

I'll start with the fan drive gear system. This is the fundamental enabler for the architecture which drives unprecedented gains in propulsive and also transfer efficiency. As a result of this, Pratt & Whitney has made significant investment by making sure that it's robust and bulletproof. Our hybrid metallic fan blades, coupled with the composite fan case and fan exit guide vanes that have been developed by JAEC, enables significant weight savings while providing world-class performance for this, our largest module. The advanced high efficiency core contains the latest in aerodynamic technologies which we have jointly developed with MTU. We have a simple robust TALON™ X combustor which provides the engine with very low world-class emissions signature and also a flat turbine inlet profile. We have a high efficiency turbine which contains the latest in the state-of-the-art in terms of materials, aerodynamic, and cooling technologies. MTU has developed the highest efficiency high speed low pressure turbine for this engine which leverages lightweight materials, aerodynamic technologies, and also very sophisticated mechanical designs.

The GTF is much more than just a gear. It's a combination of the best technologies and capabilities of this collective partnership which includes how best to install it on the aircraft. In addition to the comprehensive suite of technological advancements, the PW1100G-JM is the third member of our Geared Turbofan engine family and has already benefited from the experiences of the prior programs. The combination of a revolutionary architecture with the latest in technological advancements enables me to exude confidence that this engine will be a great product that will substantially outperform the competition. We're now poised to start the best part of the program, which is running the engine through a grueling validation program. This has been constructed to test the design to its limits, leading to engine certification in less than 21 months which will enable us to be able to launch the engine for the A320neo. I'd now like to hand the platform over to Mr. Jim Dunn, Pratt & Whitney's Chief of Systems Validation, with whom we now all rely upon to keep us on track for certification.